A public records search of Rubio provides some interesting expenses. Rubio charged $777.66 for expenses at the Marie Livingstone restaurant. Rubio was living large on the RPOF credit card. However, the records don't provide a clear picture of Rubio's spending. It is easy why Rubio and the RPOF do not want to release the full records.

Quote of the Day

Will Rogers: "I belong to no organized party, I'm a Democrat."

The GOP does stay on message. Democrats fight about policy & strategy. The fighting between the White House v. progressives and progressives v. Democratic loyalists is normal. It may hurt Democrats in the midterm. That doesn't mean I want to see Democrats become dittoheads, have one one set and ideological purity tests. That have destroyed the Republican Party and allowed people like Sharron Angle and Joe Miller to take center stage. The Democratic Party needs to be a big and dysfunctional tent. It is a pain in the ass. The longterm results will be better policies for the American people.

Update: Instead of people being mad at progressives Democratic loyalists should be mad at conservative Democrats actively working with Republicans to kill lefty proposals.

Sean Hannity Waterboarding Update

In April of 2009, Sean Hannity told actor Charles Grodin he would allow himself to be waterboarded.

Asked whether he would consent to being waterboarded, Hannity said: "Sure … I’ll do it for charity … I’ll do it for the troops’ families."

Keith Olbermann offered $1,000 for every second Hannity last. Hannity still has not submitted himself to be waterboarded for charity.

The amazing thing about Fox News is guys like Hannity and O'Reilly feel they must play up this false tough guy image. Grodin clearly threatened Hannity's manhood and got Hannity to agree to do something he has no intention on following through with. Sometime Pushing Rope contributor Alex Pickett allowed himself to be waterboarded. Alex only lasted a few seconds. Pickett was told this before being waterboarded.

“One tablespoon of water in your lungs and you’re dead,” he says,matter-of-factly. “I wouldn’t recommend it.”

New Joe Garcia Ad

The Joe Garcia has released an attack ad against David Rivera. There have been investigative media reports on Rivera ramming into a truck carrying the campaign mailers of an opponent. Rivera has also been accused of domestic violence. Rivera claims it was another David M. Rivera. Below is a Clerk of Courts record of the restraining order.

Charges were filed against a David M. Rivera by Jenia Dorticos. If it was another Rivera then why did the politician David Rivera appear in a Facebook photo (that has since been taken down) with the woman's mother.

David Rivera the politician is the only David M. Rivera who comes up in public records for Miami-Dade County.

MIAMI – On Wednesday, the Joe Garcia for Congress campaign launched a television ad titled “News” (Click here to watch the ad). The 30 second spot highlights a CBS 4 investigative report on David Rivera’s attempt to hijack a mail delivery truck on Miami’s busy Palmetto Expressway that carried his opponent’s campaign fliers. As both CBS 4 and the Miami Herald have reported, David Rivera has lied about the attack and has even misrepresented the contents of the police report. A “fact check” of Rivera’s deceiving statements is attached to this e-mail.

The Garcia campaign has launched an accompanying website with the ad, http://DavidRiveraTruth.com to inform voters of Rivera’s dangerous and reckless past.

Giancarlo Sopo, spokesman for the Joe Garcia campaign, issued the following statement regarding the ad:

“People have a right to know about David Rivera’s disregard for innocent lives. As news outlets, witnesses and a police report all confirm, David Rivera used his car to force a mail delivery truck, carrying his opponent’s fliers, off the Palmetto Expressway during rush-hour traffic. Rivera’s reckless attempt to hide the content of those fliers endangered the lives of innocent drivers on their way home. Rivera has shown no remorse for his recklessness as he continues to lie about it. David Rivera is dangerous and unfit to represent our families in Congress.”

Pinellas County School Board District 7 - James Jackson Hillsborough County School Board District 6 - April Griffin

House District 44 - Diane Rowden (DEM) House District 49 - Darren Soto (DEM) House District 51 - Janet Long (DEM) House District 53 - Rick Kriseman (DEM) House District 57 - Stacy Frank (DEM) House District 60 - Russ Patterson (DEM) House District 69 - Keith Fitzgerald (DEM)

The big story is how did Bob Hackworth lose out on an endorsement to Susan Latvala. I hope to get an answer to that question shortly. Hackworth mentions nothing about gay rights issues on his campaign web site. I do take exception with Hackworth's claims that the Tampa Bay Rays have had a "huge economic impact to the county and to the region." I have blogged about how tax subsidized stadiums bring money only to sports franchises. The taxpayer is left paying the bill.

The April Griffin is of great interest to me. Griffin is running against Terry Kemple. The latter's campaign is so broke that Kemple's web site has been suspended.

Please contact Inspyre at (813) ***-**** and follow the prompts to ourBilling Department for assistance with this matter. We are sorry for anyinconvenience this has caused.

Kemple is against the teaching of evolution and billboards of the bogus quotes the Founding Fathers never made about the separation of church and state. This blog has also had great joy mocking Kemple. I usually don't do endorsements, but I want to see Griffin win big.

Update: Nadine Smith of Equality Florida sent me this email to explain the endorsement.

"Both candidates are strong supporters of equal rights. Susan Latvala led the push to expand the human rights ordinance in Pinellas County and Bob Hackworth helped pass the Dunedin HRO. Our PAC criteria gives weight to incumbancy and found Susan to be the stronger candidate to endorse."

More Republican Endorsements For Sink

Gubernatorial candidate Alex Sink has received the endorsements of Republicans Carmine Priore and Dawn Pardo. Priore is the Wellington Vice Mayor. Pardo serves on the Riviera Beach City Council Chairwoman.

Pardo on the reason for her endorsement.

“As an elected official, governing and being fair to all people on all issues is best done with someone who is more moderate than extreme, as her opponent comes across,” Pardo says.

Priore statement on his endorsement.

“I don’t have any problem with crossing over,” he says. “I try to leave my partisan politics to the federal level, because there I can see a difference in policy and ideology.”

Sink recently received the endorsements of Republicans Phillip J. Mays and Ken Bryan. Obviously, many Republicans were angry with the dirty campaign Rick Scott ran against Bill McCollum. It be interesting to see if more Republicans defect into Sink's camp.

Latest Andrew Breitbart Temper Tantrum

Andrew Breitbart is refused to talk to Talking Points Memo about James O'Keefe's bizarre plan to film himself having sex with CNN reporter Abbie Boudreau. Fortunately, Boudreau was tipped off about O'Keefe's goal to act out his porn movie fantasies. (Ceiling mirror and dildos? Really.) O'Keefe has posted videos on Breitbart's web site in the past. Breitbart defended O'Keefe when the latter was arrested for attempting to tamper with Sen. Mary Landrieu's office phones. Breitbart got into an insane shouting match with David Shuster.

Breitbart and Shulter argued over O'Keefe's ACORN videos. A law enforcement investigation found that O'Keefe doctored the video.

Brooklyn prosecutors on Monday cleared ACORN of criminal wrongdoing after a four-month probe that began when undercover conservative activists filmed workers giving what appeared to be illegal advice on how to hide money.

While the video by James O'Keefe and Hannah Giles seemed to show three ACORN workers advising a prostitute how to hide ill-gotten gains, the unedited version was not as clear, according to a law enforcement source.

@owillis '@andrewbreitbart's crew'? do you want to get sued for libel?

It is an empty threat. O'Keefe has been on Breitbart's payroll. Shulter reported the fact in the video and Breitbart did not refute it. Breitbart would be laughed out of court if he tried to sue Willis over a tweet. Breitbart needs to spend less time worrying about the Left and more time working on anger management issues. The guy seriously has problems.

Side note: Glenn Reynolds links to an Esquire interview of O'Keefe accomplice Ben Wetmore defending the plan to seduce Boudreau on the boat. Reynolds is actually doing pushback for his buddy Breitbart. I am more than happy to point out the moral void that is InstaPundit.

Wednesday, September 29, 2010

Neil Young & Crazy Horse - The Loner

Latest Charlie Crist Ad

Charlie Crist's latest ad shines a light on the corruption scandals of Marco Rubio and Kendrick Meek. Crist fails to mention his own roll in appointing the indicted Jim Greer to the Republican Party of Florida. Is it too much to ask for Senate candidates that aren't tied to corruption. This is a depressing Senate race.

Bob Woodward on Morning Joe

Bob Woodward talks to Joe Scarborough about the problems President Barack Obama faces with Afghanistan, the CIA and his own military generals. Woodward wrote that Gen. David Petraeus refused to give President Obama an exit strategy for Afghanistan.

Frustrated with his military commanders for consistently offering only options that required significantly more troops, Obama finally crafted his own strategy, dictating a classified six-page “terms sheet” that sought to limit U.S. involvement, Woodward reports in “Obama’s Wars,” to be released on Monday.

According to Woodward’s meeting-by-meeting, memo-by-memo account of the 2009 Afghan strategy review, the president avoided talk of victory as he described his objectives.

“This needs to be a plan about how we’re going to hand it off and get out of Afghanistan,” Obama is quoted as telling White House aides as he laid out his reasons for adding 30,000 troops in a short-term escalation. “Everything we’re doing has to be focused on how we’re going to get to the point where we can reduce our footprint. It’s in our national security interest. There cannot be any wiggle room.”

Petraeus's reaction was, "They fucked with the wrong guy." Petraeus's only strategy was to stay in Afghanistan indefinitely.

Kendrick Meek Zombie Watch: CNN Poll

CNN has released a new poll on the Florida Senate race. Marco Rubio is solidifying his lead against opponents Charle Crist and Kendrick Meek. Rubio is polling at 42 perecent with likely voters.

Rubio - 42 percent Crist - 31 percentMeek - 23 percent

Among like voters Rubio is polling at 44 percent with men, 40 percent with women and 45 percent with whites. Rubio's Hispanic background hasn't hurt him crossing over to white voters. The same can't be said for Meek. The Congressman whose claim to claim is winning his congressional seat without ever having to face a Democratic or Republican opponent is polling at 16 percent with whites. The CNN poll does not have numbers for non-whites.

Crist is polling better among men and women than Meek, but not as well as Rubio. Kos summed up the race.

It's an all-around mishmash of suck. Rubio is gaining. Crist is plummeting, and Meek is rising all the way up to ... a less embarrassing third place finish. There's absolutely zero there to get excited about.

Two Republican Endorsements For Alex Sink

Alex Sink has received the endorsements of Republicans Phillip J. Mays and Ken Bryan of the Johns County Commissioners. Mays released this statement.

"I'm supporting Alex Sink for Governor because of her integrity and no nonsense style of leadership," Mays said in a statement e-mailed by the Sink campaign. "Alex doesn't bother with partisanship, she is focused on doing what's best for Florida."

Why Both Parties Aren't Serious About Deficit Reduction

I shockingly agree with Dan Drezner and Megan McArdle. Neither the Republicans or Democrats are serious about reducing the deficit. Democrats want to extend the Bush tax cuts for the middle class and poor. Republicans want to extend tax cuts with people making over $250,000-a-year.

Drezner: They basically say, 'We want to seriously cut the deficit. We don't want to touch entitlements and we're not going to touch defense spending. And we're not gonna raise taxes." Go!

The Senate voted against the deficit reduction committee. These same Democrat and Republican Senators whom claim to be concerned about the deficit panic when it comes time to take action. The House of Representatives reinstituted PAYGO in 2007. The House abandoned PAYGO less than a year later. The current PAYGO rule is the party in power (Democrats) can't declare an emergency exemption to get around making cuts in other parts of the budget to balance out the passage of a certain bill. Congress does not have the moral courage to balance the budget.

Douchebag of the Day: James O'Keefe

James O'Keefe is a seriously mentally disturbed young man. What else could explain his bizarre plan to try have sex with CNN reporter Abbie Boudreau on camera. O'Keefe's plan was to isolate Boudreau on a private boat and attempt to seduce her. O'Keefe had a memo went a list of sexual items to help him entice Boudreau into having sex.

What could make this creep think he could get Boudreau into bed is beyond me. I can only imagine that O'Keefe has a problem with women and believes all sex is like a porn movie. This is an example of written speech O'Keefe's was going to attempt to seduce Boudreau with.

Abby, I want to take you to a higher place. CNN must be a tough place to work, let's make some headline love."

Attempting to film a woman having sex without her knowledge has nothing to do with conservative or liberal politics. It is just downright hateful and potentially criminal. Fortunately, O'Keefe's assistant Izzy Santa warned Boudreau in advance. I don't think it would be unreasonable to be concerned about Boudreau's safety if Santa went through with her part of the plan of getting Boudreau onto the boat. In the CNN video, Boudreau explains the conversation she had with Santa.

O'Keefe is getting rightfully condemned on both sides of the blogosphere.

If an enterprising citizen can expose media bias with a video camera and good idea, that’s a good thing. But I fail to see how luring a lone female reporter to a remote location and isolating her on a boat, surrounding her with sex toys and pornography, and trying to convince her that the virtual stranger sitting next to her is coming on to her, possibly in front of a “sex tape machine,” does that. That’s not a recipe for a gotcha video, it’s more like a step-by-step instruction on how to cause discomfort and fear. What an ugly and potentially traumatic situation to create on purpose. It’s not clever or funny, it’s sick.

O'Keefe feared that Boudreau might get the better of him as a journalist, so he plotted to destroy her with sex. Happily, it all blew up in his face.

O'Keefe's above-ground career as a conservative activist may be over for the time being. He won't go away, of course. He'll just be pushed deeper in the shadows. There's always work for a dirty trickster in politics. I look forward to reading some day that O'Keefe has been arrested for a fourth-rate burglary.

This is without question the sleaziest story I covered since the Mark Foley scandal.

Why Alan Grayson Went Too Far

Alan Grayson would have probably had an easy win over Republican Daniel Webster. Alan Grayson then decided to run the distasteful ad "Taliban Dan Webster."

It is one thing to hit your opponent hard. It is another to come off as a nutty Tea Partier. I can't stand Daniel Webster. I have no problem with Grayson attacking Webster's social positions. Comparing him to the Taliban is way over the top. Peter Schorsch has a post how the ad has galvanized Republicans. GOP media strategist Rick Wilson claims the Webster campaign has raised $300,000 from the right-wing push back against Grayson. Wilson makes a statement I absolutely agreee with.

As for the earned media narrative, it went from: “pugnacious, well-funded Alan Grayson” to “barking lunatic and liar Alan Grayson” in just 24 hours. The Factcheck.org takedowns of Grayson’s two spots here and here are unequivocal: Grayson’s ads are false and misleading. Poltifact feels the same way.

Grayson's own internal poll showed him with a commanding lead over Webster. Grayson could have run a positive ad talking about his family and the things he stands for. Instead, he decides to stoop to Karl Rove-level swift boating. Grayson is like a pitbull that doesn't know when not to attack. The one person that seems to think this ad was a great idea is Kenneth Quinnell. This kind of political savvy explains why Quinnell was such a success on the Meek campaign.

A source close to the campaign told the Buzz that Webster has already received $40,000 from people outraged by the ad. The campaign sent an e-mail to potential donors but has also benefited from media coverage -- from MSNBC to Glenn Beck -- in the past two days.

Why Rubio Won't Release Credit Card Records

Marco Rubio was interviewed by the Florida Times-Union editorial board. Rubio was asked about Republican activist Chris Ingram giving Tampa Tribune political reporter William March emails of Rubio telling Ingram he has four years of records of spending on the Republican Party of Florida American Express card.

In one e-mail he provided, Ingrammentioned the remodeling costs. Rubio's responses don't mention those costs, but say he paid any personal charges himself.

In an e-mail dated Dec. 24, Rubio responds to Ingram, "I have the statements now. It is all mostly a bunch of commercial airlines, rental cars, hotels and travel restaurants. Any personal charges were paid by me directly."

In an e-mail the day before, Rubio said, "This has been addressed. There is no issues with my card. (I spent less in 4 years than Sansom did in 2.)" – a reference to former House Speaker Ray Sansom, who also had a party credit card and has been indicted on charges he misused state funds to help a political supporter.

According to Ingram, Rubio told him he used the Republican Party of Florida credit card for about "$4,000 to $5,000" for new flooring for his home. The St. Petersburg Times has documented Rubio's lavish RPOF credit card expenses.

• $765 at Apple's online store for "computer supplies."

• $25.76 from Everglades Lumber for "supplies."

• $53.49 at Winn-Dixie in Miami for "food."

• $68.33 at Happy Wine in Miami for "beverages'' and "meal."

• $78.10 for two purchases at Farm Stores groceries in suburban Miami.

• $412 at All Fusion Electronics, a music equipment store in Miami, for "supplies."

Rubio spent over $100,000 on his RPOF credit card from November 2006 to November 2008.

The transcript of Rubio's interview with the Florida Times-Union is interesting for what is not said.

Q: "I'd like a yes or no answer. Did you ever use your Republican Party of Florida credit card to purchase flooring for your home?"

Rubio: "Look, I've already addressed these credit card questions. The bills came to my home and I always wrote a check for personal expenses."

Q: "But did you ever use the card to purchase flooring for your home?"

Rubio: "If there was an accident, any time there was something on there that was personal, I promptly paid out of my own pocket."

Q: "A Florida newspaper has reported that it has obtained a copy of an e-mail from you where you acknowledge possession of four years worth of credit card statements? Why not release the copies and end the discussion?"

Rubio: "Those credit card statements are an internal party matter. I'm not going to release them."

Rubio could say, "I never used the Republican Party of Florida credit card to have my floor done." Instead Rubio uses lawyerly language to talk around the subject. And why exactly is the Republican Party of Florida credit card an internal party issue for Rubio but there can record released that attack Crist (but doesn't actually implicate him.) Rubio supposedly has the records he can just release them. The reason is the RPOF is a nonprofit and funds are meant to strictly further the goals of electing Republican candidates and not runs to the wine store. Illegal use of nonprofit money is a crime. Rubio has bigger problems than winning the general election.

Quote of the Day

"Within days of the start of the Obama administration, before the ink was dry on his oath of office, Republicans openly bragged about plans to ‘break him and engineer his Waterloo. Announcing that ideological purity was more important than obtaining a majority, the prevailing Republican motto was, ‘We’d rather have 30 Marco Rubios in the Senate than 50 Arlen Specters.’"

Arlen Specter, lashing out against Jim DeMint, during one of his final Senate floor speeches.

I for one do not want 30 Marco Rubios in the Senate. Rubio should open a history and economics book before running for office. To say Rubio is not very bright is a vast understatement.

Fans, those fickle beasts

As a Red Sox fan, I often hear the same refrain from fans of baseball teams that suck: The Boston Red Sox blow all this money on players and we can't! It's unfair! Wahhhh! These fans never mention that they're team probably got a stadium financed with public funds while the Sox ownership keeps pouring money into the smallest, and one of the oldest, stadiums in baseball.

Boston fans also pay astronomically high ticket prices, yet fill up that tiny little bucket of a stadium 81 times a year. Every Sox game over the past five years has been a sellout.

No wonder the Red Sox can afford to give outrageous contracts to all stars. But what amazes me this baseball season is the Tampa Bay Rays fanbase -- if you can even call it that. The Rays have arguably been the best team in baseball all season, yet Rays fans complain their team sucks. The fans level of whining reflects in attendance at home games -- about 12,000 fans saw their Rays clinch a playoff berth last night.

I just checked Rays ticket prices. Bleacher and upper deck seats go for $10 - 17; press box level seats go for $29; the second section of seats behind all the "expensive" front section seats go for $22; and the lower box/front section seats go for $42. At most stadiums, upper deck seats behind the plate are fine -- and those go for minor league prices for Rays fans! And $42 gets you close to the field? Forty-two dollars doesn't get you a friggen hot dog and beer at Fenway Park. Rays fans can pay these prices to see an elite team that could win the World Series this season play! What are they complaining about?

So the next time I hear some fans bitching about how the Red Sox buy championships and only the Yankees can afford to compete with them, I'll ask them why fans can't show up when the Rays put a winning team on the field. As for that salary dump your team will do next season, Tampa -- hey, you get what you pay for. You'll have no right to complain about it.

One final note, speaking as a Red Sox fan: If the Rays make it to the World Series, I can't wait to see the Phillies stomp all over them again.

Another Democratic Endorsement For Crist & What It Means

“I am supporting Governor Crist because he chose to follow his personal convictions over that of a party ideology that is becoming increasingly out of touch with the issues that most Floridians face in their everyday life,” Whitehead said.

I have literally lost track of how many Democrats have endorsed Crist over Kendrick Meek. I would send an email to the Florida Democratic Party asking what they think about Whitehead's endorsement, but they would just stick to talking points about supporting Meek. At some point this has to be embarrassing. Past and present Democrats are ignoring the party nominee and the FDP and endorsing Meek.

Kenneth Quinnell did a post hysterically fact-checking my tweets. (I look forward to Quinnell fact-checking my Facebook status updates.) That doesn't bother me and Quinnell can blog whatever he wants at his site. I find the last three paragraphs of his posts of interest.

The first part of this is largely true. It’s not remotely true for the reasons Michael thinks it is. The facts don’t matter here. I know why Meek couldn’t get Netroots love and I’ve explained it to Michael, he ignores it and says it was because I did a “shitty” job, despite the fact that the very people who aren’t giving Meek that love explicitly told me that it wasn’t because of me.

The last part of this is speculation on Michael’s part and is not supported by any evidence that I am aware of. Yet Michael says that it is a “fact.” I guess Michael and I jus have different definitions of the word.

Are we suppose to believe that Bill Clinton's endorsements and fundraising had nothing to do with Rodham and Meek getting the Democratic Senate nominations. Imagine Florida Democrats getting together in a star chamber. We would have to suspend doubt and believe Florida Democrats found that the best candidates to run against Connie Mack in 19944 and Crist and Rubio were two scandal plagued Democrats.

Rodham never ran or held elected office before his 1994 campaign. Rodham is the brother of Hillary Clinton. The endorsement of Bill Clinton cleared the Democratic fields. The closest thing to an opponent Rodham had in the Democratic primary was UFO conspiracy theorist Mike Wiley. The year before Rodham and brother Tony got into trouble for asking corporations to pay for their personal parties.

Tony knew that Step 1 was to go out and buy a tuxedo. Step 2 was equally simple: hire a lawyer to dial the Top 10 companies in America and get them to bankroll the brothers' parties. "We obviously need to pay for it somehow," Hugh told the Wall Street Journal.

In some ways, the ambition of their reach as they solicited $10,000 donations from the likes of Ford Motor Co. and Mobil Corp. is surprising for two men who have declared that their only goal in the capital is to raid the White House refrigerator. "As you can see, we do like to eat," Tony has said about himself and his portly brother. But at another level, the Boys, as the family has called them for years, may have simply exhibited the naive impulse of new guests wanting desperately to join the party. (Most potential bankrollers turned them down, and the fetes were dropped.)

Here is a picture of Hugh Rodham. Does he look like anyone's idea of a Senator.

I ask you do you honestly believe Democrats would make Hugh Rodham their first choice as a Senate candidate. If Meek was Florida Democrats first choice than why are so many willing to abandon him? Bill Clinton needs to stop playing kingmaker in Florida politics. If the Florida Democratic establishment can't stand up to Clinton than they will keep making it easy for Republicans to win Senate seats.

Before the Clinton endorsement of Meek, Pam Iorio was the Democrat establishment people were begging to get into the race. Iorio has never lost an election and is popular along the important I-4 corridor.

Meek's mother Carrie Meek announced she would not run for her Florida Senate and congressional seats shortly before the filing deadline. The only Democrat that filed on time was Kendrick Meek. Carrie Meek angered other Democrats by giving her seat to her son. Meek ran unopposed in the Democratic primaries of his first Florida Senate and congressional races. Carrie Meek's districts are over 80 black Democrats. Her son was guaranteed a safe seat after winning his first Florida Senate and congressional primaries. The districts are aligned so it is virtually impossible for a Republican to win. Meek faced no Republican candidates in his congressional races. I ask you is Meek the first candidate the establishment would pick if Clinton didn't give an endorsement. Do you really believe Meek is the Democratic dream candidate to run against Crist or Rubio? Kenneth Quinnell would have you believe that.

The Democratic endorsements of Crist is a reaction to Meek having the path cleared for him during his career and doing nothing to earn it. Many Democrats would rather lose with Crist than Meek. The star chamber is selecting Crist and ignoring Clinton.

Why the District of Columbia is A National Tragedy

Census data shows D.C. has the highest rate of extreme poverty (10.7%) and the highest median income ($86K).

It is a national tragedy that the District of Columbia has had high rates of poverty and murder. People have argued against D.C. getting statehood or a voting Congressional member? I fail to see how giving D.C. proper representation could be worse than the status quo.

Monday, September 27, 2010

Bizarre Obama Administration GOTV Strategy

Democrats should "remind our base constituency to stop whining and get out there and look for alternatives," Biden said, echoing the message this fall.

The Obama administration have been relentless in attacking the base. Obama attacked the base at a recent fundraiser. The CNN story suggests the Obama political team is using these attacks as part of their 2010 strategy. As I said in a previous post, progressives are not viewed by Team Obama as part of their base. This strategy is staggeringly stupid. It does make clear where Team Obama's stands with their own base.

Thought of the Day

When Jane Hamsher and other progressives complain health care reform was too tailored towards the health care industry the Obama administration ignored them. When Andrew Breitbart attacked Shirley Sherrod the Obama administration fired her out of fear of angering Glenn Beck. That tells you all you need to know about who President Barack Obama believes is his base.

Sunday, September 26, 2010

More Marco Rubio Economoc Nonsense: Social Security Edition

Alex Burgos of the Marco Rubio campaign went way off the message by telling blogger and Miami Herald columnist Joy-Ann Reid that Rubio supports privatization of Social Security. Rubio would later run away from supporting privatization of Social Security. Read copies of the emails below and click to enlarge.

Reid explains that Rubio hasn't been honest about his position on Social Security.

Here was my inquiry on February 3rd of this year, regarding Marco Rubio’s view on Social Security privatization, and Mr. Burgos’ on the record response. I was asking Burgos to respond to Texas Rep. Jeb Hensarling’s call to turn Social Security over to the private sector and cutting benefits, so again, the question was specifically about privatizing the program:

RUBIO: Anyone telling you that we shouldn’t touch [Social Security], they are going to play tricky political games, they’re going to go around saying that I’m in favor of privatizing it, or raising the retirement age on current beneficiaries —

CAVUTO: But you are open to privatizing it, sir?

RUBIO: No, I think for that — no I’m not. That time has come and gone.

CAVUTO: What about for young guys like you who could take some of the money and put it in the market?

RUBIO: The problem is that it takes money — it makes it more difficult to balance the system in the long term.

CAVUTO: Do you’d be against it?

RUBIO: Yeah, I don’t think that’s the solution.

Allowing future retirees to invest Social Security taxes into the stock and bond market does nothing to address the funding needs for current or future retirees who wish to stay in the government Social Security Trust Fund. An AARP study found changing over the current Social Security system to private accounts would cost $600 billion - $3 trillion. Recipients of private account would either get less or a negative return. The Wall Street meltdown of 2008 shows how asinine an idea private accounts are.

There are a few factors for conservatives push to privatization. Conservatives hate the successful programs of the New Deal. Interest groups in the financial sector would greatly benefit from the influx of Social Security money into the stock and bond market. Conservatives needed an expert to tell them what they hear They found an unlikely ally in José Piñera.

Piñera was the architect of Chile's private pension plan under the government of Augusto Pinochet. The lattter is noted for abusing the human rights of Chileans. The New York Times reported "3,200 people were executed or disappeared, and scores of thousands more were detained and tortured or exiled." Chile's private pension system was filled with corruption and underfunded by younger workers wisely choosing not to enter the system. To make matters worse, Chile's private retirement system is expensive.

At the moment, the government pays about 5 percent of gross domestic product, or more than it spends for either health or education, on pensions for the poor, payments into a separate military retirement plan and so-called transition and administrative costs. Supporters of the privatized system argue that the state's burden will diminish as older retirees enrolled in the pay-as-you-go system that prevailed here before 1981 gradually die off.

But skeptics point to another developing problem: many young people, who should be enrolling in the system early to accrue maximum benefit, are staying out or paying in very little. Some cannot afford to contribute beyond the obligatory minimum payment, which is 10 percent of wages, while others are either self-employed or have been hired by companies as low-paid independent contract workers and therefore do not have to contribute at all.

"The bottom line is that this system does not work with this labor market," said Andras Uthoff, an economist who is director of the social development division of the United Nations Economic Commission for Latin America here. If trends continue, he added, "only a small percentage of people are going to be able to finance meaningful pensions. What happens then to the rest?"

The Social Security Trust Fund is projected to run out in 2041. Social Security is much more stable than the faulty accounting that is the Department of Defense budget. Conservatives want to trade a retirement fund that has lifted million of Americans out of poverty for a failed banana Republic system. From a fiscal policy standpoint it makes no sense. From a purely cynical profit and greed motive it becomes easier to understand why conservatives want the Chile system.

Side note: the AARP study and reports on Chile's private accounts debunk Milton Friedman's claim that movement Socail Security accounts to private accounts is a "myth."

A Second Wave of the Housing Crisis

In a recent episode of NPR's Planet Money podcast, Jacob Goldstein explains why housing prices are set to spiral farther downwards. Goldstein used a figure that, until the broadcast, I hadn't heard of: a monthly statistic estimating the amount of time it would take to sell all the homes currently on the market.

Despite this months it would take to sell all homes figure being at historic lows, Goldstein says the housing market will see more glut because of a "huge, looming wave of foreclosures coming down the pipeline in the next year or two". But foreclosures of sub-prime mortgages which caused the housing crisis, and recession which followed, already happened, right? What else is there to worry about?

But there is a second wave of mortgage foreclosures coming. In December, 2008, 60 Minutes explained that mortgages riskier than sub-prime were made after the sub-prime ones. Many of these mortgages are referred to as "NINJA loans" -- no income, no job, no assests.

Friday, September 24, 2010

Alex Villalobos Endorses Dan Gelber

State Sen. Alex Villalobos has endorsed Dan Gelber for Florida Attorney General. I have heard that Gelber cultivated good relationships with his Republican colleagues. Gelber was able to turn that nice guy charm into an endorsement.

"I am proud to endorse my good friend and colleague, Dan Gelber in his campaign for Attorney General," said Sen. Villalobos. "As a former top federal prosecutor, Dan understands the importance of serving as an Attorney General that puts protecting Floridians above partisan politics, and that's why I've endorsed him for Attorney General. Public safety and security is not a partisan issue, and I have great confidence in Dan to always put the best interests of Florida's citizens above all else."

“Marco Rubio is no fiscal conservative. He will never do anything to stop the out of control spending in Washington or take on the special interests because he works for them and not the taxpayers,” said Senator Villalobos. “I know Charlie Crist’s independence will allow him to take the best ideas from both parties to create jobs, lower our taxes, and reduce our nation’s deficit. He is the only candidate for U.S. Senate I can say that about, and I’m proud to formally endorse his candidacy.”

Ouch. In Rubio's defense, his use of the Republican Party of Florida's American Express card has been providing great stimulus to the Florida economy. Just ask the wine store near Rubio's home.

Villalobos was at one time a rising star in the Florida Republican Party. He was set to become Florida Senate President. Villalobos voted in support of what would become the class size amendment. Bush publicly endorsed Villalobos' Republican primary opponent. Villalobos was re-elected, but his fellow Senate Republicans would not risk angering Bush by making him Senate President. Short answer: Villalobos doesn't owe the Republican Party of Florida shit.

Thursday, September 23, 2010

Most Newsworthy Story of the Day

Addressing a perennial source of jokes, Mr. Boehner says his dark complexion is natural, similar to that of his mother and four (of 12) siblings. "I have never been in a tanning bed or used a tanning product," Mr. Boehner said. His staff showed a high school group photo where he has the darkest face in Moeller High's all-male class.

So my theory about Boehner being a genetically super-powered orange alien is correct. I knew it!

CFO Web Site on Health Care Changes

The state government of CFO Alex Sink has created a web site to inform Floridians of the new changes in health insurance since the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act officially went into effect.

Currently, most health insurance policies have provisions stating that the maximum the insurer will pay during the life of the policy is $1 million or maybe $2 million. In addition, they have a maximum the insurer will pay in any calendar year, usually around $250,000. As of this Thursday, insurers will be prohibited from limiting the amount they will pay over the lifetime of the policy. However, until 2014, plans will still be allowed to have an annual limit on coverage payments.

All health plans will be prohibited from dropping consumers from coverage just because they get sick.

Children under the age of 19 with pre-existing medical conditions will no longer be denied coverage by employer plans or new plans in the individual market because of their pre-existing condition.

New private plans will be required to cover preventative services and neither copayments nor deductibles will apply to the cost of these services.

All new plans will have to provide consumers with two levels of appeal when the plan denies payment for medical services. The first level would be a review by the plan itself. The second level would be an independent review process in which an outside group of medical experts review the claim to determine whether the plan followed its own rules in denying the claim.

Employer health plans will be prohibited from establishing any eligibility rules for health care coverage that have the effect of discrimination in favor of higher wage employees.

Health plans will be required to allow young people to remain on their parents’ health plans up to their 26th birthday, provided that they do not have access to coverage on their own plan.

Consumers will have more freedom of choice in the selection of their physicians.

In 2011, insurance companies will have to use 80 percent of revenue from health insurance policies for improving health care. How that will be used could be a potential loophole for many companies. Seniors on Medicare Part D will receive a 50 percent discount for brand name drugs.

The Medicare Part D deal is actually bad. The White House, Max Baucus and pharmaceutical industry made this deal. The document was leaked to Ryan Grim of ">The Huffington Post.

Milk Party Rally Debate

“This is not about raising taxes, it’s about raising children and putting children as a priority,” said David Lawrence Jr., chair and creator of the Children’s Movement of Florida. “We are building a long-term, sustainable movement.”

Lawrence, former Miami Herald publisher, has said voters should demand that lawmakers put children before “high-speed trains, prisons and roads.”

The Children's Movement of Florida wants to do a debate between Alex Sink and Rick Scott. The debate would focus solely on children issues and will be held at the University of Miami in Coral Gables on October 16th. Roberto Martinez will serve as moderator. The panelists Toni Jennings and Bob Butter worth.

Sink has confirmed to the CMOF that she would do the debate. Scott has not confirmed if he would attend. The problem for Scott is the debate's rules would force him to study up on policies for childhood development. Scott will not be allowed to bring up Obama and the health care reform bill. Scott hates debating and has shown an utter disdain to all things wonk. Scott's problem is the momentum is tilting towards Sink. Scott may have to do this debate.

David Lawrence Jr. tells the Miami Herald about the goals of the Milk Party rallies.

Wow. Kendrick Meek should win in a "landslide" if people paid attention to his talking points. I am willing to examine the facts. Nate Silver rates Kendrick Meek as having a 1.7 percent chance of winning. The TPM Poll Tracker averages out the major polls and finds Meek running a distant third. Apparently, Abe Dyk's brilliant Jim Davis strategy is getting Jim Davis results.

It occurred to me that the Kendrick Meek campaign needed a theme song that best summed up their efforts. I thought a song tinged with sadness would best suit the campaign. Let's be real. The election day results will be sad and maybe even a landslide. Unfortunately for Team Meek, they will be on the wrong end of the landslide.

Obama Heckled at DEM Fundraiser

I detailed how Obama killed an earlier attempt to end "Don't Ask, Don't Tell." This time around Obama spent zero political capital when the vast majority of Americans support ending the military policy.

It is hard for Obama to convince the protesters that enough money is being spent on AIDS research when banks are getting bailed out and some Democrats want to extend the Bush tax cuts. For many of these protesters increased funding could mean the difference between life or death. It is irreverent whether or not Obama started the TARP bailout. (Obama did not.) The base is pissed off at Obama and he is so isolated from the real world that he can't understand why.

Who Will Replace Summers?

Excuse me if I don't get excited about Anne Mulcahy replacing Lawrence Summers as director of the National Economics Council. The business community feels more comfortable with Mulcahy because she is the former CEO of Xerox Corp. Mulcahy has also served on the Board of Directors of the Washington Post, Johnson & Johnson, and Citigroup. She certainly has an impressive business resume. However, there are bankers and economists who have a better nuts and bolts understanding of the economy.

President Barack Obama is not going to select a progressive. Laura Tyson is on the shortlist. Tyson is an economic realist. In Bob Woodward's book "The Agenda," Tyson was not afraid to bring up bad news in the Clinton White House. Obama doesn't another NEC director more conserned with access and politics than good policy. Tyson would be a good fit for the job. The question is does Obama want to hear what Tyson has to say.

Other candidates on the shortlist Diana Farrell and Ann Fudge.

Update:Brad Delong proposes that Tyson become Treasury Secretary and Tim Geithner become the director of the NEC. Delong also gives Summers underserved praise. Summers is Delong's mentor.

New Florida Hometown Democracy Ad: Dozer

This gets my vote for second best ad of the Florida election season. Florida Hometown Democracy released an ad promoting Amendment 4. The image of a voter get run over by a developer's bulldozer is to the point and clever. Political ads are suppose to be simple and memorable. This ad fills that function. Ads by Kendrick Meek and Bill McCollum illustrate what haapens when a campaign tries to be too slick.

The Velvet Underground - White Light/White Heat

Colorado Insurers Drop Children From HC Policies

Change you can believe in: six health insurance companies in Colorado are dropping children from policies.

At least six major companies — including Anthem, Aetna, Cigna and Humana — have said they will stop writing new policies for individual children not covered by their parents' or other plans, insurance officials said.

They blamed health reform mandates taking effect Thursday requiring companies that write such policies as of that date to also cover sick children up to age 19.

Some of the same insurers, meanwhile, have filed proposed rate increases with Colorado for individual policies, hiking premiums by up to 27 percent, regulators said.

Public and private partnerships usually work poorly. Jeb Bush's own inspector general Bill Monroe has been unable to prove that outsourcing has saved the taxpayers money. Obama's health care reform plan is a near carbon copy of Sen. John Chafee's 1993 proposal. Chafee's goal was to protect private insurers from the potential of President Clinton signing a comprehensive universal health care reform bill. Clinton's health care plans died in committee so it is hard to say exactly what ClintonCare would look like. Obama's intentions were to protect special interests.

Frankly, the complaining from Obama is just sad. Either it is hollow grandstanding, or Obama actually thought that the private, for-profit health insurance companies were honest brokers he could trust to not try to find loopholes in the new regulations. If it is the latter, President Obama’s much-touted intellect needs a reevaluation.

Private insurance companies are in the business of making a profit. Not providing universal health care. The Colorado situation was predictable. Obama's deer-in-the-headlights act is getting old. This health care bill was horrible and progressives will be forced to defend it. I think I will take a pass.

Al Franken DADT Speech

Al Franken gave a stirring speech on the Senate floor about the insanity of the "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" policy. Franken recounts during a USO show in 2006 and making a DADT joke. After the show, female soldiers came up to Franken and him they were gay. Franken is moved nearly to tears giving the speech.

Let me also briefly tell you about my experience. Before I was a Senator, I did a number of USO tours over the years. And on each tour, I was more and more impressed by the men and women of our military.

I always did Don't Ask Don't Tell material, and over the years that I did the tours, you could feel the change in the military.

I was on, I think, my seventh tour. As we always did, we had an eclectic show, and it was a long show too. Most of the troops would be standing for four hours during the show, though I remember during this one particular show at one of our bases, there was a group of female soldiers sitting in the bleachers who were particularly enthusiastic.

The troops loved the show, probably because otherwise they spent all of their time either in danger, or incredibly bored.

So I got to my Don't Ask Don't Tell material. "One thing I don't get," I'd say, "is Don't Ask Don't Tell. The bravest serve. Take your commander, for instance. He's one of the bravest men ever to serve in the U.S. military. And he's also one of the gayest. General, stand up, thank you!" The troops loved this, they thought it was hilarious, everyone was cheering and laughing - maybe especially those female soldiers up in the bleachers.

And at the end of the show, there was a very moving performance of a patriotic song, which was always very emotional. The commander gave each of us a flag that flew over the base - I still have it in my office - and he told me, "Al, keep telling those Don't Ask Don't Tell jokes." And that group of female soldiers up in the bleachers came up to me after the show to tell me how much they loved my Don't Ask Don't Tell material, and that it was personally important to them.

Alan Grayson Internal Poll

This poll tallies out to 101 percent. That makes no sense. Internal polls should be taken with a grain of salt.

Webster is in trouble if independent voters are really swinging towards Grayson.

Other revelations from the poll include the facts that Grayson has a dramatic lead of 41% to 9% among Independent voters, a striking margin of 60% to 13% among voters under 35, and an enormous advantage of 84% to 5% among African-Americans. “Webster is toast,” said Drzymala.

Grayson seves as an example of a progressive winning a traditionally conservative district. Blue Dogs and New Democrats are good at losing elections. That doesn't mean I expect progressives to win big overnight in Texas or Alaska. Voters don't like politicians that constantly flip flop. Can anyone tell me what Ben Nelson or Blanche Lincoln truly care about. (Besides getting elected.) Grayson's victory will refute the Rahm Emanuel argument that progressive candidates can't win and get re-elected to Republican districts in the South.

Sen. Shelby Wants to Gut Financial Reform

Richard Shelby would most likely become chairman of the Senate Committee on Finance if Republicans take over the Senate. Shelby made it clear to ABC News that he plans to gut the Financial Reform bill.

"The bill is so sweeping and such a game changer in many ways that it's incumbent upon us to revisit it," Shelby said at the Reuters Washington Summit.

Yes, things were working so well before. That is why taxpayers were left paying for the bank bailout. Financial institutions were taking huge risks with naked credit default swaps. AIG sold too many naked CDS. AIG was unable to pay all the financial institutions that bought CDS. AIG nearly went under and other troubled financial institutions could not get the CDS revenue owed to them.

On Wednesday, September 17th, a day after the Fed agreed to inject eighty-five billion dollars of taxpayers’ money into A.I.G., Bernanke asked Paulson to accompany him to Capitol Hill and make the case for a congressional bailout of the entire banking industry. “We can’t keep doing this,” Bernanke told Paulson. “Both because we at the Fed don’t have the necessary resources and for reasons of democratic legitimacy, it’s important that the Congress come in and take control of the situation.”

Shelby wants to maintain the status quo.

"I don't believe it's good for business, it's not good for the financial sector and ultimately I don't believe it's going to be good for credit for a lot of people who need it. It's gonna cost," Shelby said.

I have no problem with the free market and people making money. My concern is systemic risk that could cause a depression. There is a difference between encouraging free market growth and reckless financial practices. Shelby would be encouraging the latter.

Shelby has set his sights on the newly created Consumer Financial Protection Bureau.

"The consumer agency bothers me the most," said Shelby, who failed to reach a compromise with Democrats and voted against the bill. "I thought the creation of it and the way it was created was a mistake," he said.

Notice Shelby didn't offer an alternative to make sure that consumers aren't vulnerable to shady financial practices. It is absolute insanity for Republicans to think different results will be achieved using the same faulty financial practices.

Shelby saves his most wingnuttery attack for Elizabeth Warren.

"I believe she's got a big ax to grind and she's sharpening that ax," said Shelby. "I don't think that you need somebody in a position like that with all these preconceived ideas and I believe she has a lot of them."

Warren is serving the American people and not special interests. Warren hasn't been afraid to put Treasury Sec. Tim Geithner in the hot seat. Sen. Chris Dodd has been against Warren's nomination. Warren is scaring members of both political parties. She must be doing something right.

Michael Steele Comes to Florida

Michael Steele rolled the "Fire Pelosi" bus into Florida. Steele's idea of connecting with Florida voters who are unemployed or losing their homes is to talk about a member of Congress running for re-election in California.

The United States of America prides itself on having the finest military in the world because of the hard work, dedication, and sacrifices of our brave servicemen and women. And yet, under 10 U.S.C. § 654 (Policy Concerning Homosexuality in the Armed Forces), better known as "Don't Ask, Don't Tell," the talents and contributions of our openly gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) service members continue to be ignored simply because of who they are. Every day, we lose approximately two service members to this misguided, unjust, and flat-out discriminatory policy. Don't Ask, Don't Tell is not only an injustice to them, but a disservice to the U.S. military and our country as a whole.

The White House responded by forcing Hasting to dop his repeal amendment from the Defense Department bill. Hastings went on-record saying the White House was not going to back the repeal.

``Due to pressure from some of my congressional colleagues and from the White House, I have withdrawn my amendment,’’ he said. ``I would, however, like to note that it is most unfortunate that we are not addressing `don’t ask, don’t tell’ at this time.’’

After the amendment was dropped, Hastings wrote a letter to President Obama asking for a repeal of DADT. Hastings was brushed off. Obama was too concerned about appeasing social conservatives who would never vote for him.

To Harry Reid's credit, he took up a vote for a repeal of DADT. Reid failed to break the 60 vote Senate filibuster. Blanche Lincoln and Mark Pryor voted against the bill. Reid voted against the bill so the bill could be taken up again.

Does anyone recall Obama leaning on Senators to vote for appeal of DADT? Obama leaned on the Senate to protect law that does not allow Medicare to negotiate for cheaper pharmaceutical drug prices.

Many Democrats, especially committee chairmen and liberal lawmakers, were chaffed at the backroom deal Baucus and the White House struck with the drug industry, a perennial boogeyman for the political left.

“We don't represent their stockholders, we represent our stockholders, which are the taxpayers,” said Sen. Charles Schumer (D-N.Y.).

There is more support for ending DADT than the Obama-backed health care bill. It is not surprising the party that produced Mark Foley and Larry Craig would pander to the base by voting against repeal of DADT. What is Obama's excuse? Neoliberalism needs to die. The sooner the better.

Patti Smith - Rock N' Roll N****r

A Muslim President Who Attends Christian Church

This Ben Smith tweet is irrefutable evidence that Barack Obama is a Muslim. How else can you explain Obama attending services at a Christian church. Obama is a sly sinister trickster, but I am on to him.